International Game Technology is steeped in the world of gambling and gaming. The Reno-based company sells slot machines to MGM, Caesars and other casino owners. IGT also has expanded into the online world of gambling where it is legal, serving up interactive poker and sports-betting games for European gamblers on the internet.

Speaking with industry analysts Friday, Patti Hart, CEO of IGT, said her company is making the deal for Double Down assuming that there will be no legislative changes that would legalize online gambling in the U.S.

Double Down Casino draws millions of monthly Facebook users, who play poker, blackjack and slots for virtual rewards such as free chips to keep playing. Hart said acquiring Double Down is IGT’s entry into the rapidly growing world of social online gaming. She said she thought social gaming with virtual currency could “peacefully coexist” with IGT’s core business of catering to gamblers and casinos.

“This is our effort to move outside of the current restrictions that we are all battling to participate in an experience that is different in the actual way the financial transaction takes place,” Hart said.

Still, the acquisition -- expected to be finalized on the early part of 2012 -- flashes a future that could open up online gambling, such as poker, to a younger audience in the U.S. through mobile apps and social network platforms.

Online gambling is still illegal in the U.S. but the landscape is shifting. There is pressure to change the law and legalize online poker, lotteries and other forms of internet gambling. Some of the pressure is coming from cash-strapped states eager to boost lottery revenue by offering online versions. The U.S. Department of Justice recently said it was it reversing its interpretation of the federal 1961 Wire Act, potentially opening the door for legalized online gambling in the U.S.

Double Down rival Zynga already has a Facebook poker game offering virtual rewards, not cash pots. Caesars, meanwhile, recently bought up Playtika, maker of the social game Slotomania.

Hart said she was mindful of what the company’s clients in the money-wagering industry might think of a move that could be perceived as an opening for online poker on social media sites that could change gambling habits, much the way the internet has shaken up the publishing, music and movie industries.

Hart said she has spoken to CEOs at casino companies, and it might take them a while to “digest” IGT’s acquisition. But said Double Down allows IGT to reach a younger demographic, more comfortable with tablets and smartphones, and it also offers a chance to expose younger people to more casino-style games online.

“We spent 500 million of our shareholders' money to add capabilities that will benefit them. That will provide them an on-ramp of capabilities in the social gaming space and virtual currency ahead of real money wagering in the United States,” Hart said.

Hart said IGT has been eyeing social gaming for quite a while, and she said the acquisition of Double Down is an important piece of the company’s growth strategy.

“With more than 1 million daily active users Double Down Casino is attracting more than 10 times the average number of daily visitors to Las Vegas,” Hart said.

IGT sells slots and video poker games to casinos. The company also has interactive real-money wagering games such as casinos, bingo, poker and sports betting in places where it is legal. IGT in 2011 bought the Sweden-based online gambling site Entraction, which operates one of the world’s largest online poker networks.

While the future of online gambling in the U.S. remains uncertain. Once sure bet is the deal for IGT to buy Double Down will be a big jackpot for the startup’s executives, including CEO Greg Enell.

As part of the deal, IGT is paying out $85 million in retention payments to keep the management team on board over the next two years. IGT also says it will spread around up to $165 million in cash over the next three years to stockholders -- many of whom are executives and employees -- if Double Down hits financial performance goals.